Associates in Computer ... something?

[dfrecore]

This may come off as negative, but I do not mean it to be in any way negative.

Very VERY rarely does a person become a master at their craft doing 'pretty much everything with computers'. I have been in the technology world for about 15 years (and was a hobbyist before then).

While I could get most jobs done, I am not the go to guy (at work) for anything but networking and network security. There is just way too much stuff to keep up with to stay current on everything. Time after time we see organizations which have one or a few "Jack of all trades, master of none" type people running the IT and it's kind of difficult to see how sub-optimal everything is running and how stressed out the IT staff are trying to do a million things.

I feel it is far better to work on something specific that he's most passionate about, but keep playing with other things that interest him. If he's not sure, there's no harm in playing the field, but it's pretty hard to set your focus on something that's so wide and expect to have much job satisfaction in the long term. I've worked in several things to see what I liked and didn't like and have progressed and specialized in things that I like more and more. Even now, I have a pretty good industry certification but when I meet with other people who have more than I do, I am humbled by how little I know about some things.

TL;DR Focus on a more narrow subject matter that most interests him, if it turns out he doesn't like it, then focus on something else. It doesn't hurt to play with different aspects but trying to do everything all the time is painful in the end.

I totally agree. Your SIL needs to look at the different degrees, and figure out exactly which one he wants - they are all completely different.
- A BSBA in CIS is a business degree with a little IT thrown in there - I wouldn't recommend it for someone who wants to focus on the computer side of things
- An IT degree focuses on IT, and you may get a little business, a little programming, but not a lot - kind of an overview of the different aspects of IT
- A CS degree is very math-y, science-y, programmer-y

He needs to look at WGU's IT degree, and maybe TESU's CS degree, and really look at the courses he would need for them.

He also needs to look at the jobs he's interested in, and look at the requirements for them; do they want a CS degree or an IT degree? Do they want certs (then prob IT).

[davewill]

I third the notion that he needs to narrow down. In broad strokes, the paths are:

Electrical Engineering - Serious HW development. If he's not already into circuits, this probably isn't his gig. Hardest to do online.
Computer Science - Serious SW development. Lots of niches that do more or less coding, work more or less directly with HW, or do more or less with big data...
Business/CIS - Analyst type work that has more to do with business than it does with computers. Can end up as "IT lite" or as a serious business analyst.
Information Technology (IT) - Maintenance, configuration, and planning of computer systems small and large. Once again lots of niches depending on whether you like dealing with individual PCs, big data centers, networking, security, etc...

One way he might start is by taking a serious programming course like Java or C++. Useful for any of the degrees and will hopefully help him decide whether he wants to code for a living or not.

[Ideas]

I third the notion that he needs to narrow down.

You're fourth

[davewill]

You're fourth

I was third when I started writing. Just too slow!

[rlw74]

I'm not in the techy world so not an expert here but the question that comes to mind is..... which is better - the degree or the certifications? I assume having both is the best of both worlds. I have a few friends who went and got certifications from local community colleges and got into the most basic, entry level IT type jobs. Usually by the time they were ready to get their degrees they had already worked in a few different areas and knew what they liked. So before they dropped a whole lot of money into a four-year degree, they knew what they wanted and even were with an employer where they knew exactly what that employer wanted. I don't know if the advice changes when you are talking about an adult trying to start a new career or if its an 18-yr-old high school graduate who doesn't know what they want to do. But is there ever a time where one shouldn't focus on the degree but on the skill / work experience first?

[Ideas]

But is there ever a time where one shouldn't focus on the degree but on the skill / work experience first?

Sure, if the person isn't sure what they want to do and can somehow explore it, or they have a good job opportunity already (one which doesn't care about degree/certifications they don't have yet, or will pay for the school/training).

[theonlyski]

I'm not in the techy world so not an expert here but the question that comes to mind is..... which is better - the degree or the certifications?

That depends on what part of IT you want to work in. Management is heavier on degrees, the people where the rubber meets the road is heavier on certifications.

My current position requires a 4 year degree and 2 years experience OR 2 year degree and 6 years experience OR 6 years of experience. It may have been easier to get in the door with a 4 year degree, but I had ~10 years of experience when I applied so it didn't matter. The degree likely wouldn't have been beneficial in my current position nor would it have gotten me as far as my willingness to do what needs to be done and progress my personal abilities in the field.

I am a network architect, my boss (the network administration manager) has a business degree with an accounting minor. He doesn't need the tech background, that's what we are for (and none of us want the management job, they asked...).

[dfrecore]

I'm not in the techy world so not an expert here but the question that comes to mind is..... which is better - the degree or the certifications? I assume having both is the best of both worlds. I have a few friends who went and got certifications from local community colleges and got into the most basic, entry level IT type jobs. Usually by the time they were ready to get their degrees they had already worked in a few different areas and knew what they liked. So before they dropped a whole lot of money into a four-year degree, they knew what they wanted and even were with an employer where they knew exactly what that employer wanted. I don't know if the advice changes when you are talking about an adult trying to start a new career or if its an 18-yr-old high school graduate who doesn't know what they want to do. But is there ever a time where one shouldn't focus on the degree but on the skill / work experience first?

My husband went and got certs and got entry-level jobs when he first started. Help desk comes to mind. He didn't love it, but liked the field enough to know that if he could get enough experience, he could work his way up into a job that he would love. So, no degree, just working his way up. But, it was 1998 when he started, and times were different. I'm not certain what it's like there now, and how quickly you can get to making a decent wage. If you're a guy with a wife and 2 kids making $50k, it's going to be rough starting back at the bottom, and then who knows how long before you're back to making $50k? Plus, a lot of companies are going to look at your work history and not want to hire you anyway, thinking you're overqualified (in some ways) and won't be happy with the salary and the work.

I do think that cert's overall aren't as valuable as a degree. Some certs are worthless. A few are very valuable. But it's hard to know which is which if you're not familiar with the industry. And some are going to be almost impossible to get without a lot of knowledge and industry experience. It's not like you can just run out and get a CISSP cert and get a great job. You have to have years of experience at a certain level to pass that (and for them to even let you take it). Yeah, you can go get an MCSE or A+, but that won't get you much in today's world.

[davewill]

... But is there ever a time where one shouldn't focus on the degree but on the skill / work experience first?

Tech is one of those areas where it is at least possible to pull yourself up out of the call center by your bootstraps. I parlayed working in retail and tech support into a 30+ year software engineering career. That said, I would never recommend someone set off to do it that way. If at all possible, (and we know just how possible it is!) they should get their degree. If they need to work, just being an IT or CS student can be enough to get paying internship or part time work.

[theonlyski]

Yeah, you can go get an MCSE or A+, but that won't get you much in today's world.

I believe with both of those, you may qualify for a cup of coffee at starbucks, provided you bring $5 to the deal.

(I kid, but I do also have an A+ from 2002)